A New Beginning For All

W. Terry Varner

January 1, 2017

Today is the first day of 2017. It can serve, if we will allow, as a time for a new beginning. Who does not like a new opportunity? It is simple. The first day of a New Year in 2017 falls on the Lord’s Day (Sunday). What can we make of this New Year?

The Greatest Factin History—God. “In the beginning God”(Gen. 1:1). These are magnificent words. There is no apology; no reticence. Moses gives the origin of Creation. No words are more simple and yet profound in all the literature of man than these opening words of the Bible. God was there in the beginning thinking and creating. Suppose we eliminate God and substitute Fate, Chance, or some other uncertain thing, what great confusion of thought there would be!

Filed from my reading, but without documentation, consider the following: “Professor Huxley once said, ‘The future will be dominated by the nation which sticks most closely to the facts.’ Then arose Edward Miall, M.P., president of the royal commission on Education, to say, ‘I agree with Mr. Huxley; but I want to add one word. Allthe facts! The greatest fact in history is God!”’ God is! Our God is alive! This great factgives us strength, courage, and motivation to live 2017 come what may.

A Great Picture of Life. The opening chapterof the Bible (Genesis 1) is so simple and yet so profound. The closing chapterof the Bible (Revelation 22) concludes there is fullness of life and happiness awaiting those who have served God. However, between Genesis 1:1 and Revelation 22:21 is a sad story of man’s sin and misery. It is comforting to know that life did not begin with sin and sorrow, but with God. Likewise, it is comforting to know though sin and misery describes man, God offers man, before the final judgment, a way out of sin and misery by his obedience to the gospel. Jesus is man’s Savior for all who obey (Heb. 5:8-9) by faith (Heb. 11:6), by repentance (Luke 13;3), by confession of Christ (Rom. 10:9-10), by immersion for remission of sins (Acts 2:38), and by a life of holiness (Rom. 12:1-2; 1 Peter 1:15-16).

A Great Message from God’s Throne. “Behold, I make all things new”(Rev. 21:5). Do we really have to encourage you to look casually at the present world conditions in order to acknowledge that a change is most necessary and welcome? Man has corrupted himself and God’s beautiful world with sin.

Yes, today the calendar changes from 2016 to 2017, but the mere change in the calendardoes not make all things new. Some of us have lived a many years and after a period of time we realize that they are not very new at all. What was new to us soon wore away. Life becomes very much as before unless we allow Christ to change us (Philip. 4:13). A change in our conditionswill not always insure a new hope and new life. It is not a new home, a new car, or a new job that we need, but simply the putting “on the new self, which is being renewed in knowledge after the image of its Creator. . . . Put on then . . . compassion, kindness, humility, meekness, and patience, bearing with one another and, and if one has a complaint against the another, forgiving each other; as the Lord has forgiven you, so you also must forgive” (Col. 3:10, 12-13, ESV).

With the Christian having a living faith in God, he has the key unlocking for him to solve the mysteries and problems of life.